Sun-powered bins running wifi to appear at university

SOLAR-POWERED bins that crush their rubbish to make extra space are being installed at Dundee University.

Zero Waste Scotland has given the university a £41,000 grant for the 10 Big Belly bins.

These use solar panels connected to a battery that powers an internal compactor.

This allows the bins to take up to eight times as much rubbish as a normal bin before they have to be emptied.

They also produce enough extra power to run free wifi hotspots.

Trudy Cunningham, the university’s environment and sustainability officer, said: “The Big Belly bins feature a wireless management system which provides online access to real time bin fill levels, reducing the number of collections required by 86% and making this service more efficient.

“If successful, we hope this innovative new approach could be rolled-out further.”